Would you dispute this charge?

Question

This weekend my wife and I rented a small U-Haul truck to pick up some new furniture we had ordered and to take our old furniture to my daughter's place. I rented it for a total of 6 hours be we didn't need that much time. I paid the rental of about $86 for the U-Haul and then about 4 hours later we returned it. The guy at the rental place said to bring it back full of gas since that's how we picked it up. Before we took it back I stopped at the gas station a few miles from the U-Haul store and topped off the tank. We had used less than a quarter of a tank of gas so it took about $12 to push the needle past full again. This morning I checked my bank account and noticed that the U-Haul place had charged my card an additional $2.29. Gas prices in our area are $2.67 for regular unleaded so they are apparently charging me for less than a gallon of gas. Would you dispute this charge? I'm about to call the U-Haul place and ask them what the additional charge is for. Again, the tank was full when I returned it but I guess it wasn't full enough.

Update:

@Buster

I didn't try to skimp them as you say. When I filled up the tank it pumped until the pump stopped. I even squeezed a few times and it wouldn't take any more gas. I can't see how they are saying that I still owe them for gas.

babyboomer1001 · Answer

I'd want to know what the extra charge was for.  Call and ask.  It's the point of the matter, not the small amount.

Anonymous · Answer

No I would not dispute that.   There is literally nothing to dispute.

You were supposed to return the tank full and you didn't, therefore you were charged for the 3/4 gallon that was missing from the tank.

You don't see how that could happen?    You gassed up a big gas guzzling truck "a few miles" from where you dropped it off.   You used 3/4 gallon of gas driving "a few miles" from the gas station to the U-Haul place.  You are supposed to gas up across the street or down the block.

I swear to Bob you win the self-entitled moron of the day award.

? · Answer

Its probably a mileage charge.

When you rent a U-haul truck there is a charge per mile driven in addition to the daily rental fee.

They'll ask you how many miles you *think* you'll drive, and charge you accordingly when you pick up the truck.

Then when you return the truck they either charge you again for the difference (if you went over) or refund your card (if you drove less).

So you probably went a couple miles over the estimated distance and that's what the charge is for.

You can call and ask, but I wouldn't dispute the charge because you probably signed a contract agreeing to this.

D.E.B.S. · Answer

I would discuss it with them.  Tell them you'll be more than happy to show your receipt at the gas station and they can figure out the total miles driven based on their logs.  If they didn't budge, I'd actually send an email to corporate as an FYI.  That's not how they would want their local offices operating.

busterwasmycat · Answer

I am not such a cheapskate that I would look at the needle to decide when the tank was full rather than fill until the pump auto-stopped, so I don't think I would ever get such a surprise charge. I would dispute it as wrong because it clearly would be wrong.  But is 2 bucks worth my time when I tried to skimp them and they caught me?  Nah.

Would you dispute this charge?

5 Answers